Happy New Year! PBS LearningMedia kick-starts 2016 by providing educators with practical tips, tactics and digital tools that will help them navigate the digital age of learning, plus invitation to apply to be a 2016 PBS LearningMedia Digital Innovator!

PBS is once again looking for America’s most innovative educators!

Are you using digital media and technology to lead innovation in your school? Then apply now through 2/8/16 to be a 2016 PBS LearningMedia Digital Innovator! Whether you are flipping your classroom, integrating tablets and mobile devices, using game-based learning to engage your students and more, we want to hear from you. Submit your application today for an opportunity to receive one year of FREE PD including virtual trainings, access to exclusive resources and events and membership into a robust professional learning community. Up to 54 Lead Digital Innovators representing the best in their state will also receive an all-expense paid trip to Denver, CO and this year’s ISTE conference for in-person training!

The class of 2015 PBS LearningMedia Digital Innovators has been blowing us away and making headlines all year. Some of their accomplishments include:

Being named state Teacher of the Year

Co-presenting with PBS at prestigious conferences

Mentoring their peers

Appearing on their local PBS stations

And many, many more…

Don’t just imagine what opportunities the PBS LearningMedia Digital Innovators program has in store for you; take the next step and apply now through 2/8/16! APPLY NOW:http://to.pbs.org/1Sg2ALX

Ed Talk

Meet Malik Lewis, who teaches history at ACORN Community High School in Brooklyn, New York. If there was one thing he could change about the educational system in America, Lewis says it would be the way students are placed into one school as opposed to another based on geographic, socioeconomic and racial reasons. “I think one of the best things about our public school system is that it is there to educate all children, and to create an American sense of consciousness about what it means to be a citizen and what it means to participate in this country,” he says.

What would you change about the educational system if you had the opportunity? In this video collection from edtalk, you’ll see what else Lewis has to say about public education, teaching history, and professional development, as well as insights on education from his colleagues. WATCH: http://to.pbs.org/1DvekAB

Transformative Teachers

How do you cultivate empathy, gratitude, forgiveness and self-acceptance in the classroom? In the Transformative Teachers video collection from The Dalai Lama Center for Ethics and Transformative Values, get ideas on how to help students develop these core values through art, writing, performing, and other activities.

For example, in order to explore and experience self-acceptance, students use the performing arts to express who they are and to develop leadership skills. The performing arts – activities such as improvisation, singing and movement – can help students better understand themselves, build their sense of confidence, and appreciate their individuality. Says one student: “Self-acceptance means knowing that I will never be perfect, and being okay with that.” EXPLORE: http://to.pbs.org/14pwsSs